Hayes wants apology; Herndon says no

Northport City Councilwoman Judy Hayes demanded an apology from Mayor Bobby Herndon on Monday, but she did not get one.

By Lydia Seabol AvantStaff Writer | The Tuscaloosa News

Northport City Councilwoman Judy Hayes demanded an apology from Mayor Bobby Herndon on Monday, but she did not get one. During the council meeting on Oct. 7, a visibly angry Herndon formally apologized for what he called embarrassing behavior by Hayes. Herndon’s apology was directed to Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox, the Tuscaloosa Police Department, the Tuscaloosa Transit Authority and two Northport businesses: CARE Ambulance and Mr. Bill’s Family Dining.“It ticks me off, it does — I shouldn’t have to do this,” Herndon said on Oct. 7. “But as long as I’m mayor of the city of Northport, I won’t let any City Council member embarrass the city this way.”Herndon would not divulge details about what happened between Hayes and the Tuscaloosa Police or the Tuscaloosa Transportation Authority. He did say that Hayes made degrading public statements about Maddox online. Herndon also said that Hayes visited two local businesses and “made a scene” on separate occasions, touting her role on the council. Hayes negated those comments Monday, saying she has only represented the concerns of her district and has done nothing that would embarrass the city. Instead, Hayes said she feels Herndon and the rest of the City Council are bullying her and treat her differently because she is a woman. “I say publicly that I categorically deny the mayor’s comments regarding me and really call to task his professionalism and work ethic,” Hayes said, referring to the comments about her being made during a public meeting when she was absent. “Mayor Herndon is neither my employer, nor is he my supervisor,” Hayes said Monday. “My employer is the people who live in District 1. I answer to them.”While Hayes acknowledged she did go to Mr. Bill’s Family Dining and to CARE Ambulance, she did not make a scene, she said, but instead voiced concerns of her constituents. Rather than making public statements about her, Herndon should have contacted her directly, Hayes said. “For him to wait until I’m sick and not at the meeting — he should have afforded me the professional courtesy and done the professional way of handling any complaint, talking to me about it,” Hayes said. “What he did was more of the same, bullying. He waited until I was home sick in bed, and every bit of it is a pack of lies.”Herndon said the last time he tried to work things out with Hayes on his own, he almost got arrested. The relationship between the two officials has been rocky since their August 2012 election. The day after the election, Hayes filed a police report against Herndon claiming he had threatened her on the phone on Election Day. At that time, Hayes said Herndon became angry with her after she posted on Facebook, inviting the public to a catered barbecue dinner at Northport City Hall after election results were announced. The problem was, the dinner was a private campaign party that Herndon paid for, not a public event. “He then accused me of saying things about him that I didn’t say,” Hayes said in 2012. “He said he was going to make things real hard for me over the next four years, and that I would regret being elected.”Hayes said that she became scared of Herndon and filed a report with the Northport Police Department. No charges were ever filed. Herndon negated Hayes claims over the incident. He said his original apology on Oct. 7 to the city of Tuscaloosa and the local businesses was warranted and that he would not retract his statements.Hayes said she was also disappointed that the other City Council members did not apologize. They never made any public statements against her. “I just want to put this behind us and move forward,” Herndon said Monday.